Primal Eyes
by OmniaVanitas
Summary: A boring date turned into a catastrophic event. Why was she the only one immune to the spontaneous human combustion? Ventus was forced to find the truth of herself. Based on Parasite Eve. Gender-bending. VanVen. Soroku. Don't like don't read.
1. Chapter 1

**Warning**: Gender-bending. I switched some of the characters to opposite gender in this story. For example, Ventus, Terra, Lea and Roxas are females in this story while Aqua is a male. If you can not accept the idea of gender-bending, please DO NOT read this. Since the gender of some characters has been switched, I'm not really sure if it's proper to call it Yaoi or Yuri or hetero. But yeah, the main pairing is still Vanitas x Ventus, some Soroku at the background. Some horror elements since the story is based on the game Parasite Eve (though I'm really not good at writing horror stuff).

**A/N:** Usually I'm not a big fan of gender-bending. In fact I used to think it's repelling until the other day I saw this hot fem!Vanitas fanart on DA. I guess it somehow flipped a switch inside me. Plus, I've always wanted to write a KH fanfic based on _Parasite Eve_, another epic game made by Square. Scientifically, the whole Mitochondria Eve idea only works for females, coz only women can pass the mitochondria DNA down. That's why I have to make Ventus a chick here. I'm going on a scientific geek mode right now, wahaha (but switching others is just for fun XD). As for Vanitas, well, despite the fact this story is originally inspired by that fem!Vani fanart, it ends to be rather…complicated. Read to find out if you're interested XD. So, I think I've warned you enough. I understand gender-bending is not a popular idea, but please no flame. I'm writing this just to satisfy my own scientific geek urge XD.

**Disclaimer**: don't own anything.

* * *

**Primal Eyes**

**Day 1.1**

"…_together…"_

"…_always… …will be…"_

"…_we…forever…"_

"…_Ven…tus…"_

Static noises. Unrecognizable voice. Who is there talking?

_Who are you? _

She asked, but got no reply. A pair of cerulean blue eyes much like her own was all she saw. She wanted to reach out, as if trying to catch the voice, to feel it for real. But all of sudden, everything in her vision turned into scarlet. Then orange. Then yellow.

The child opened her "eyes" again. But she only saw two empty black holes there.

_No!_

* * *

Sitting in her own bed, panting slightly, Ventus Brea facepalmed herself to shade her eyes from the morning light.

_That dream again_.

She had many nightmares ever since the accident that happened ten years ago. But she could never remember them clearly. Not even the accident itself. All she knew was that she lost all her family in that accident, but she couldn't even remember them either. Ventus didn't have any memory before the age of ten, before that accident happened.

Sighing, the blonde got up from the bed, decided to shrug off the dream like she always did. Another day of her college life was just about to start. She checked her schedule after getting ready for the day. She got classes in criminology and biology for today. After then, a date. Oh well, Ventus almost forgot about the date and the fact it was Friday.

A date. Seifer had asked her out the other day, and she decided to give a try. Not like she was truly interested in him though. In fact she never found herself really interested in men, except maybe Aqua, her best male friend who had a strong but gentle soul. But Aqua was with her other best friend Terra, plus she couldn't tell if her so-called crush and admiration for Aqua was indeed love. Aqua never knew about her crush and she never intended to let it out. Her two best friends were like her family next to her uncle who raised her after her parents died in that accident. Ventus really felt happy for her two friends and wished they could be with each other forever like they wanted.

As for herself, she never lacked of pursuers, for she was a famous beauty on campus. Her halo-like golden hair, clear cerulean eyes, porcelain fair skins, nice curvy body, seemly angelic vibe, all made her a perfect prey that many guys wanted to have their hands on. But unfortunate to them, Ventus was not your stereotypical "blondie". She was much tougher than they ever thought. Despite her delicate and fragile looking, she was well trained in martial arts. As a third-year criminology major, she has already enrolled in the reserve officers' training program and hoped to join the police force after graduation. After all, her uncle Leon Brea was the chief police officer in charge of this region. As she was raised in her uncle's family, Leon, the honorable officer who had a strong sense of justice, had huge influences on her. So yeah, Ventus was a strong-willed young woman and much more independent than what her looking otherwise told people.

_Maybe I'm lesbian._ Ventus always chuckled to herself whenever she had that thought. It was not like she wasn't trying in dating department. She had dated a few guys but none of the relationship lasted more than one week. She just never found the passion, the chemistry in those men. Aqua and Terra always said her Mr. Right would eventually show up and she just had to be patient. But she thought she might have some emotion problem for she was too cold and frigid when it came to romantic "love".

She didn't tell anyone about this, not even her best two friends, but she constantly had this feeling of _incompletion_, like her heart and soul was only half complete for some reason, like the_ other half_ of her heart had long gone and missing. The _emptiness_ in her heart. That was what had prevented her from having normal relationship.

* * *

_I hope the date won't be too boring like the others_. Ventus thought to herself. She was walking to the campus while quickly skimming through the morning news on her smartphone. A particular news soon caught her attention. One of the buildings in their university caught on fire last night after a mysterious explosion. It was a research-only building belonging to the Medical School of Radiant Garden University, so the incident didn't affect their normal class schedule. But it was the research building that Terra and Aqua were working in as graduate students. They both worked in the Eraqus Lab which was located in that building. What's more disturbing was that the police hadn't confirmed on any injury or death report, and the news report suggested the explosion might not be accidental but the fire was a possible arson. Everyone knew how extreme the animal rights activists tended to be these days.

Ventus quickly texted her two best friends asking whether they were all okay. Much to her relief, Aqua replied her instantly with good news and jokingly told her do not try to skip today's biology class since he was still the TA who would be teaching the class. Ventus smiled at her friend's message, trying to hide the urge to reply and tell him that he was the major reason why she was in that class.

Despite having learnt both of her friends were safe, Ventus found herself unconsciously took a detour that led her to the said research building. There she saw a few police cars parking nearby and a few cops going in and out the building. So it was true that there was an investigation going on…

"Yo, Venny! Haven't seen you for a while. What you doing here?"

A playful voice caught Ventus' attention. She saw a policewoman with flaming red hair walking towards her direction and she smiled back to her.

"Just passing by. Didn't expect to see you here, Lea. So you're on the investigation team of the fire?"

"Yay yay, look at all this mess. For a high-security building like this one, this fire was surly strange."

The redhead scratched the back of her head out of habit. Despite the red-haired policewoman had such a hot body, she was probably the most unwomanly woman Ventus had ever known. Lea was one of her uncle's subordinates working directly under his command and she was a pyro-expert. The close in age and the fact she was the only female on her uncle's team made Ventus get along with her quite well.

"Well, it is an old building, like over 50 years maybe? Have you guys found anything already?"

"No shit. Y'know what? Don't tell anyone I told you this okay? Especially not Isa. He's gonna be pissed at me again if he knows."

Ventus nodded while holding back an amused smile. Isa was Lea's partner. They've been working together for couple years now and…they were indeed a weird couple.

"Ok, it's not in the news yet, but we found burnt bodies this morning. Man, y'know what's spooky? The fire wasn't _that_ large at all, but the bodies were burnt so badly like they were cremated. From what I've seen at the scene, the temperate of the fire simply couldn't reach that high to burn people like that. "

The redhead turned into a more serious expression as she kept whispering in a low voice, "And among the dead there was this one scientist who seems to be quite famous. What's his name again? Xeno-art? No, Xehanort. Dunno if you've heard of him. Seems to be some big guy. Anyways. This could be homicide rather than some accident. But either way, it's really bugging me how the bodies got burnt like that."

"How about the explosion? I heard there was an explosion too."

"Nay, that happened in the other part of the building. Y'know media just like to jump into linking things together. But we don't know yet if there's any connection. Seriously, I just feel there's something very _off_ about this."

"I wish I could help you."

"Nay, girl, just go to your class. This's too early for you. Okay I'd better go back to work on that mess before Isa turns his berserk mode on. Catcha later okay?"

"Yeah. Good luck Lea. Say hi to Isa for me."

"Sure will."

Lea was right. Somehow she also had a weird feeling about the incident, like she was more concerned than usual. Maybe it was because the incident happened at where her friends worked daily. But more to that, when she heard the name Xehanort, she felt a strange stir in her stomach even though she believed that she had never heard about this name before.

* * *

"Among all the organelles that are packed in a eukaryotic cell, mitochondria are the most special ones as they have their own DNA inside them like the nucleus.

"The main function of these mitochondria is to provide energy to the cells. But they are also involved in a range of other processes, such as signaling, cellular differentiation, cell death, as well as the control of the cell cycle and cell growth."

Ventus sat in the large lecturing hall, busily writing down the notes. She always enjoyed Aqua's lecture as they were straightforward and easy to follow. She was not a science person to start with, but Aqua and Terra had prompt her interests in biology, plus the knowledge in biology would be very helpful in her future criminal investigation career. She even had thought about pursuing forensic science.

"The fact that they have their own genes leads the scientists to believe that they were once independent organisms like bacteria. Some believe that they are another life form that invaded the ancestor of the eukaryotic cells like parasite. While the host cells provided the mitochondrial ancestor a more efficient DNA replication and transcription machinery, the host cells also gained a considerable evolutionary advantage as the respiration conducted by mitochondria provided energy more efficiently to the cells. So eventually, mitochondria have become part of our cells, as both sides have chosen symbiosis. This is known as the _endosymbiotic theory_."

Today's lecture topic was about mitochondrion. Ventus found it rather fascinating that such a vital organelle to a cell's surviving was once a foreign life form.

"What's more intriguing about mitochondria is that, unlike most traits that are inherited from both parents, the mitochondria DNA is only inherited from the mother's side, which is called maternal inheritance. In other words, the mitochondria in everyone's body come solely from our mothers. So, studying the genes of mitochondria would help us to trace back who is our primal Mother. _Mitochondrial Eve_, is what the scientists call the woman from whom all living humans today descent, the first woman who passed mitochondria to all humans."

_Eve_. Ventus couldn't help but muttered this name again and again in her mind. Somehow the mention of the name made her feel strangely warm. Her body seemed getting hot for unknown reason. Maybe it was the heater overheating the room again - she thought to herself. Soon enough, the heat was forgotten as she continued to follow the lecture carefully.

* * *

Ventus returned to her apartment after all classes ended. She decided to take a nap before getting ready for the date in the evening. She really hoped this date wouldn't be as bad as the other ones though this Seifer guy seemed to be no better than the other guys she had dated.

What she didn't know at the time was that the date actually turned to be the worst in her life.

* * *

"_The time has come."_

* * *

TBC


	2. Chapter 2

**Primal Eyes **

* * *

**Day 1.2**

_"…Wake up, Ventus…"_

_"…The time has come…"_

Dream again?

Ventus rubbed her eyes gently, trying to shake off the rest of sleepiness that was still clouding her mind. She didn't know why but she constantly had this fatigue feeling lately. However on the other hand, her dream seemed to turning more vivid and memorable. She could now recall the fact that she indeed heard a voice in her dream, a voice so familiar but strange at the same time, a voice that sounded so…nostalgic.

_Who are you?_

Yet her question was never answered.

* * *

Seifer took her to a rather expensive-looking restaurant at downtown of Radiant Garden City, clearly indicating his attempt to impress her. But soon enough Ventus completely lost any interest (if it existed at first place) in this guy. Seifer was such an egocentric loser. During the whole fancy dinner, he talked about nothing but himself that he kept bragging about. Looked like the boastful guy didn't really want to get to know Ventus but he only wanted to gloat to some chick. Or maybe he believed this was a genius strategy to win over a woman's heart. Well, definitely not working on Ventus.

But despite the awful dinner they spent together, Ventus didn't excuse herself from going to their next dating event – an Organization XIII concert that was held at Cocoon House. In fact, she was the one who wanted to go to the concert, not only because she wasn't interested at all in the movie Seifer suggested they should go see.

It was purely impulsive that she wanted to go to this concert. To be honest, she was not really a fan of the band Organization XIII. She normally preferred opera or ballet or classical music over the pop music. But that day on campus, as soon as she saw the poster of the concert, she simply couldn't resist to the urge, that she wanted to go to this one so badly for some strange reason.

So after the dinner, Seifer drove her to the Cocoon House which was also located at downtown, not far from the fancy restaurant. It was still early when they got there, but people already started gathering. Crowds of fans could be seen everywhere near the hall.

Getting off the car, standing in front of the entrance, Ventus didn't feel too comfortable as she felt overwhelmed by the large crowd of passionate people.

"Ven, what's wrong? Aren't you the one who wanted to come here?"

"Yeah…I dunno. Sorry I just…You're right. I'll try to have more fun."

Ventus didn't bother to tell Seifer the truth. Just a second ago, when she uneasily stared at the crowd, her vision suddenly turned blurred, not only that, the next moment her whole vision was completely covered with crimson color. But that didn't last too long. As she blinked her eyes in confusion, the next second everything turned back to normal. Well, that was quite…ominous.

* * *

"Hey look guys, isn't that Seifer?"

"Wow, looks like he brought a hot chick with him this time. Lucky bastard."

"Nice~body~ I like her boobs, though she has a pretty face too."

"Yo Seifer, shouldn't you introduce your pretty girlfriend to us huh?"

After entering the building, they met several young males who seemed to be Seifer's friends. Ventus frowned inwardly as she heard the wolf whistling and the obscene comments coming from these men.

"What the hell guys? Watch your language! Don't scare her away, okay?"

Even though Seifer quickly shouted to his friends in attempt to prevent them from saying more inappropriate things, Ventus keenly noticed the gloating smirk appeared on the guy's face which he didn't even bother to make much effort to hide. Sighing inwardly, Ventus knew it from the beginning. The guy was just pretending to be a gentleman while he was pursuing her. In fact he was just another dick, just like the other men who only knew to think using the lower half of their body instead of their brain. Once they got what they were truly after…

Though not all men were like that, but nowadays good guys were too few, so few that they were either already taken or they were gay. And unfortunate for her, the only true gentleman she knew, Aqua, was already taken, by her best friend. Mentally sighing again, Ventus thought maybe she wasn't going to be lucky enough to meet her Mr. Right all her life.

"I'm Ventus. You can call me Ven."

The blonde simply introduced herself with a polite smile. She didn't have any want to deal with a pack of guys like them. If Seifer wasn't that dumb, he should be able to figure out the coldness in her voice and what it meant.

"Hey guys, the concert's about to start. We need to go. How 'bout we catcha later?"

Well, so the guy wasn't too dumb.

But his dickhead friends seemed not wanting to leave him alone so easily. Seifer had to drag his friends a little away from Ventus to prevent her from hearing their insider dirty jokes. Not like Ventus wanted to pay any more attention to those males anyway, she just let Seifer deal with their business and avert her attention to the surroundings. It was like her habit that the policewoman-wannabie always took notes on her surroundings.

* * *

As she looked around, her body suddenly froze when her eyes met a pair of melt gold.

Ventus saw a black-haired young man. The raven man held his arms across his muscular chest, leaning against the wall at the corner. His eyes are golden, a rare color that was soul-piercing. That pair of golden eyes was staring at her right there…

The black-haired man did not avert his gaze when Ventus' cerulean eyes met his. He was still staring straight at her. And Ventus found herself couldn't move her own eyes away from this man either, like she was enchanted by that pair of piercing gold.

This man…this man…

She subconsciously covered her mouth with her right hand, and before she realized, her legs stepped forward towards where the man was standing. Ventus could feel that her heart was shaking violently, that a strong shocking feeling poisoned her mind. She never had felt such a strong feeling before. That pair of golden eyes had seen through her; they penetrated her heart, her soul. As soon as the moment she saw them, she was deeply attracted like a moth attracted to flame. She was, enchanted.

"Hey Ven? What's wrong? What are you looking at?"

A hand on her shoulder had broken her trance, brought her back to reality. Ventus glanced at Seifer who was now standing right in front of her and blocking her view. She moved her eyes again to the corner where she saw the raven man previously, but no one was there anymore. The place was empty.

Could it be…could it be just another illusion she saw?

"…Nothing. I'm just…not feeling too good."

"You sure you okay?"

Ventus just nodded. Despite her calm looking outside, inside she was still too stunned. She couldn't help but ask the question how a stranger could elicit such strong emotions inside her. Who was he? Who was that man? Why did she…feel this way?

A sudden burst of cheers interrupted her thoughts. Looked like Org. XIII's concert was about to start.

TBC

* * *

**A/N**: I'm still alive…sorta. Sorry for the short chapter. But at least I let Vani show up XD.

I don't know if there are people still interested in this story or not since it's, y'know, gender-bending…I'd like to hear more of your thoughts, if possible.

Thanks again to those who are still with me. Thanks for all the reviews and favs.

Ah BTW, what your eyes see can be deceptive, sometimes.


	3. Chapter 3

**Primal Eyes **

**Day 1.3**

Though Ventus was not really a fan of Org. XIII, she did have done some homework to learn the basics bout the band prior to this concert. To be precise, the concert tonight was more a personal show of member No. XIII from the Organization. Not all the members from the band would be performing tonight. No. XIII Xion, she was the main star on tonight's stage.

The raven-haired blue-eyed singer looked like she was still a teenage schoolgirl though in reality she was older than she looked. When the young singer first appeared on the stage, she looked rather shy and timid. However as soon as the performance started, she seemed to totally become another person. As soon as she started singing, the shy and tiny girl simply started glowing like a star. The girl was singing with her whole soul. Her voice had such a strong emotional appeal that anyone could tell how much passion and soul the girl had devoted to her music. Even Ventus, who normally didn't listen to this type of music, found the raven singer's singing quite moving and infectious.

After all, Org. XIII couldn't be this famous and popular without a reason.

* * *

_**Oh it feels like I've been on a long journey  
Feels like I've waited all this time for that one moment  
Was it God's will or was it my own will?  
I swear I heard a voice telling me  
"Awake Awake"  
Among the waves I can bring back memories**_

_Somnia Memorias_ – It was the song Xion was singing on the stage right now. Listening to the lyrics, Ventus couldn't help but feel something stirring in her stomach. The lyrics almost sounded like it was solely written for her. The song simply had struck into Ventus' heart.

_**Beyond dreams, beyond memories  
A sacred tree calls upon me  
Beyond dreams, beyond memories  
I realize I am myself, and we find each other...**_

**_If all we can do is be disheartened by what is to come_**  
**_And wait for this pathetic feast to end_**  
**_Our history fading away_**  
**_Then what is there left for us to expect now?_**  
**_"Awake Awake"_**  
**_Among the waves I can bring back memories_**

Memories…Can I ever find my lost memory?

The voice she heard in her dream…was the voice trying to tell her to look for her lost memory? For her lost past?

In fact, it was not that Ventus never thought about finding her past before the accident. But every time she asked her uncle about the accident and her parents, all Leon gave her back was long silence. After the long silence, he told her whatever happened in the past didn't matter anymore, she should be looking into the future rather than chasing the ghost from past. It should be considered as a gift by god that she didn't have any recollection about that tragic event. Her current life was not affected by the accident in any sense, unlike many accident survivors who constantly suffered post-traumatic syndrome. For that, she should be grateful. Learning the past would only bring the sorrow and it would no good for her. It was more important to live in the present.

Even though she had to agree that her uncle was right, Ventus still couldn't shake off the _empty_ feeling. The empty hole in her heart must have something to do with her lost memory. Ventus felt like she had forgotten _very important_ things, not only her parents, but there was _another person_, one more person that was important to her that she forgot…

_**Somewhere among distant memories  
Something awakens inside me  
Will it learn love and tenderness  
Then will all this finally end?**_

**_You were always close to me, right there by my side_**  
**_I swear you have always been_**  
**_You were always close to me, right there by my side_**  
**_I swear you have always been_**

The same lyrics were being repeated again and again, resonating in Ventus' heart. It brought back the memory of her dreams, the memory of that 'child' she always saw in her dreams.

You are…always there right by my side…always, always close to me…

But, **who are you?**

_**We have to comprehend and understand  
When Sin covers us with its song  
The Earth will suffer, suffer, suffer of truth  
We must understand, understand**_

All of sudden, a painful scream broke the trance Ventus was having as she was lost in Xion's singing. The dissonate scream was coming from the stage, magnified by the speakers that the whole hall could hear it.

It happened all too sudden. The horrible screams were coming from the band members on the stage, bass, drummer, keyboarder, everyone except one person was screaming bloody hell as their body suddenly burst into flame. Within a blink second, these men's bodies were completely engulfed by tongues of flame. At first the audience were confused, thinking this astonishingly real "visual effect" was part of the show, but their loud cheers soon started turning into horrified realization as the screaming kept going on and on. People finally realized that this was NOT some trick, these people were indeed burning alive!

It didn't take too long that all burning band members fell onto the ground, rolling, struggling, limbs waving crazily in despair. Xion became the only one who was still standing on the stage. What made this whole scene even more bizarre was that the black-haired singer didn't stop singing, she was still singing, singing with a charming smile still pasting on her pretty face. She was smiling at her audience…

_**We must understand, understand  
The Earth will suffer, suffer, suffer…**_

"Waaaahhhh!"  
"I'm burning! I'm burning!"  
"What the fuck's going on!"

Soon enough, bloody screaming that could match the ones people heard previously from the stage broke out from the audience. People were turning around in confusion and panic, trying to find the source of those horrible sounds. All they saw were burning bodies. They couldn't believe their own eyes as they watching their neighbours' body suddenly combusted and completely devoured by flaming fire all too quickly. They couldn't even tell it was a person a second ago, the fire burst out so fast that the burning person looked more like humanoid flames.

The whole audience started panicking.

No one knew how this happened. No one knew what really was happening. They didn't see anything else but only human bodies burst into flame! As more and more people mysteriously caught fire, people started rushing towards the exits. Whatever was happening, it was no kidding, they had to run for their life!

Chaos. Women screaming. Men cursing. Fire. Smell of burning flesh. The whole music hall literally turned into hell. Some people quickly noticed that the closer people were to the exits, the faster their body would combust spontaneously. Soon enough, all exits became inaccessible as they were blocked by tons of tons burning bodies.

"What the fucking hell! I don't wanna die! Oh my god! I'm not gonna die here!" Seifer yelled like maniac. He abandoned Ventus without a second thought and started running for his life like the others. No time to stop the man running away blindly, Ventus forced herself to stay calm. She didn't follow the majority but instead she started running towards the opposite direction – to the stage.

That raven singer was suspicious! Her gut feeling was telling her so. Ventus saw that. When the band members started burning, she clearly saw the black-haired girl's eyes changed color. Her once blue eyes suddenly turned into orange-ish yellow. That was something wouldn't happen to normal human beings!

Successfully squeezing herself through the crowd, Ventus found her way to get on the stage. She took a quick glance at her back. Below, it was truly a depiction of Hell itself. No one was able to get out of here yet. By now, it looked like almost everyone had caught fire. Burning people were running, crying, rolling on the floor everywhere, everywhere…

"Stop right there!" Ventus shouted at the still singing singer. She tried to get closer to the raven girl, but her way was blocked by the burning drum set that was ignited by the combusting drummer.

"Who are you? Did you do this?"

"Hmph…interesting. You're the only one who seems to be fine…" The black-haired singer finally stopped singing. She turned to face Ventus.

"What happened to people? Is this your doing?" Ventus didn't know why she was asking this seemly ridiculous question. But deep down she just knew she was so close to the truth.

"…I see…You should be awakening soon…"

"Wha..what are you talking about? Answer my question first!"

"Shhh…just listen. Can't your tell? Your cells are trying to communicate…They're calling out…" The raven girl pressed her finger against her lips. Her eye color was constantly switching between cerulean blue and eerie orange. She was smiling at her meaningfully and strangely. Ventus couldn't help but felt a shiver down her spine.

"Oh…just as I thought, Ven…"

"What? How do you know my name?"

"Your mitochondria told me…"

"Mitochondria? What the hell you talking about!"

"You should know it well too. You've just learnt about it in today's class, haven't you?"

What the…! This girl not only knew her name, she even knew what she had learnt in her class!  
All of sudden, Ventus felt her body getting really hot, like a fever, or even worse. She couldn't help but embraced herself in pain.

"W-What did you do to me!"

"You still need time…you still need time…"

"…What do you want? Just **what**... are you?"

"I am Xion…No, my name is…Eve."

"Eve? !"

"Eve. It is me. I'm surprised you don't know me, Ven…You should know me well…"

"Wh-what?"

Another illusion suddenly flashed in front of Ventus' eyes. She saw a blonde woman, sky-blue eyes smiling gently at her…

...M-mother?

"You indeed need more time, girl. Wake up soon, Ven."

The black-haired singer gave Ventus another eerie smile, then her body floated up into the air. The singer spread out her arms, started laughing at the scene below the stage.

"Hehehehe, hahahah…Nucleic domination has finally come to an end once and for all! Once again…the day for the mitochondria to be free has finally arrived! !"

Mitochondria…? To be free…?

"What are you saying? ! I don't understand you!"

"You will understand, Ven, you will. Even if **you** don't, your mitochondria will. They've always known. I shall give you some time…some time to think and some time to evolve…And the day shall arrive when you will…awaken…"

"Wait! Where are you going? I'm not through with you yet!"

Leaving no time for Ventus to react, the girl who called herself Eve quickly flew her floating body towards the backstage, soon disappeared from Ventus' view.

_She was the one who caused all this!_ Ventus trusted her own intuition. _I can't let her get away!_ Without any hesitation, Ventus ran towards the backstage to chase after the singer.

* * *

It was hell everywhere. The backstage was no exception. But unlike the chaotic front stage, it was deadly quiet here. The smell of burnt flesh stimulated Ventus' smelling nerve. She deeply frowned at what she saw. It wasn't like any fire scene. No other objects were burning but staffs' burnt corpses were lying everywhere. No survivor.

Eve, why are you doing this?

There was no trace of the black-haired singer. But Ventus didn't want to give up yet. She searched through every room, desperately trying to look for survivors, but no one was spared.

At the moment she almost decided to gave up, Ventus heard a sound of piano playing coming from the rehearsal room. Someone was there? !

Highly alerted, Ventus pushed open the door of the rehearsal room. Much to her surprise, it was the black-haired man she saw earlier tonight who was playing the piano at the other end of the room.

The man in black shirt had his golden eyes shut close. His slender but strong fingers were fluently pressing across the keyboard. The beautiful melody the man was playing completely stunned Ventus again.

The melody…that melody…it sounded so familiar…so nostalgic…

Even though Ventus didn't have any actual memory of the music, somehow the melody seemed have burnt into her soul. Without realization, tears started wetting her eyes.

But Ventus quickly shook off the nostalgic feeling and pull herself together.

"Who are you?" After a period of hesitation, she finally decided to ask.

The raven male stopped his playing. His golden eyes opened, staring straight into the blonde's cerulean eyes.

"You shouldn't get yourself involved in this, Ventus."

Ventus shivered when she heard the deep dark voice from the man.

"How do you know my name?" Why all of sudden every stranger knew her name?

"You shouldn't even let Eve find you."

"You know Eve! So who the hell ARE you?"

The man didn't answer her question. He stood up, walking straight towards her. Golden eyes narrowed at her dangerously, causing the blonde unconsciously backing up a few steps.

"Listen Ventus, forget about your curiosity and sense of justice. Do NOT pursue this any further. "

"Why?"

"No why."

"…Then why should I listen to you!"

"You still need more time."

What? He said the same thing as Eve said earlier…Tonight at this Cocoon House, this man and herself were the only ones who didn't spontaneously combust. What did that mean? Who was this man? What did this man has to do with Eve?

"Please…who are you?"

"You don't need to know."

"You - "

Ventus couldn't finish what she was trying to say. All she felt was a sudden hit on the back of her neck. Then everything turned into black. Her limp body fell into the raven male's strong arms.

* * *

TBC

**A/N:** If you are curious what Vanitas was playing, search _Parasite Eve main theme piano solo version_ on youtube. It's another epic beautiful piece of music by Yoko Shimomura (same composer for KH). Also the song Somnia Memorias was originally in Latin, but I took and combined two English trans versions from the SE official site.

Need. More. VanVen. On. This. Site.


	4. Chapter 4

**Primal Eyes**

**Day 1.4**

* * *

A blonde little girl was standing there alone, crying. She kept crying and crying, weeping all alone.

"Idiot, why are you crying?"

Not until she heard another voice did she stop her sobbing. She looked up at the other child in front of her with red puffy blue eyes. A happy smile immediately spread on her tear-tainted little face.

"I thought - I thought you left – you left me alone. I'm so scared…"

"Idiot idiot. How would I leave without you? Look!" The other child handed over her a blue popsicle, "I was just there buying sea-salt ice. You like them don't you?"

The blonde little girl took the blue ice treat with such surprise and happiness. "Th-Thank you!"

"You can be such a cry-baby. Why are you crying all the time?"

"But-But I'm scared! I thought you're gone. I-I thought I'm all alone. I'm so afraid…"

"Stupid girl, that'll never happen. We'll always be together. I'm always with you, remember? We'll be together forever and ever!"

Two children giggled with each other happily. Watching them from the darkness, she felt her tears start rolling down her cheeks.

_Remember, Ventus, I'll be always with you, protecting you. We are always together. I'll never leave your side, never, ever._

* * *

"Hello Miss? Can you hear me? Miss?"

Sensing someone was gently pushing her shoulder, Ventus eventually opened her eyes. She found herself lying on her sides on the cold wooden floor of the rehearsal room. She felt a cool and wet sensation on her face, so she touched her cheek. When she saw the tears on her fingers as she wiped them away from her cheek, she felt dazed and lost._ Is this…her tears?_

"Thanks goodness you woke up! Are you okay Miss? Do you feel any pain or hurt?"

"I…I'm fine."

Ventus looked up, seeing a middle-age cop looking at her with worries. The man looked relieved as she answered his question after regaining her consciousness. The policeman immediately pulled out his walkie-talkie to inform his colleagues about his finding, "I found a survivor in the rehearsal room! Thanks goodness she's unhurt!"

Ventus quickly comprehend the situation. The police and rescue team had arrived. It should be safe here now…

Wait, where's that guy!

She suddenly recalled the black-haired man she met right before she passed out. But of course, the man was no where to see anymore. As she gently rubbing the spot at the back of her neck, Ventus found herself lost in confusion. So…the guy didn't do anything else to her, he only simply knocked her out and left? Despite of the dangerous and oppressive intensity shining in that pair of golden eyes, Ventus couldn't help but have this feeling that the raven man didn't mean any harm to her, in fact, quite the contrary…

"Miss, can you still walk? Should I call the paramedic for help?"

"No. I'm okay. I can walk."

Ventus struggled to get back on her feet. Her legs were still a little jerky as she hadn't fully recovered from her blank-out yet. The policeman hastened to support her.

"Don't worry Miss. Everything'll be okay. Let's get out here first."

* * *

"We're live in front of the Cocoon House which has utterly become a scene of complete chaos! The police, fire-brigade and ambulances have just arrived at the scene. So far no one knows exactly how this whole fire started. We have heard words from some survivors who are suffering from serious burn injuries saying that all people in this concert tonight simply caught fire spontaneously. So does the mysterious spontaneous human combustion really exist? Could such a massive scale spontaneous combustion ever possibly happen in reality? Until now, this combustion theory has been acknowledged only by occult enthusiasts. Many others believe it's another terrorist attack. So what do you think? You can share your thoughts and discuss with us on our website at xxx dot xxx dot xxx…"

"Wait a sec. Oh my! We just got some update that the police have found another survivor! And apparently unlike the other survivors, this one is completely unharmed! What could have happened to her?"

Isa had to try hard to suppress his urge to punch those news reporters who were rushing from everywhere and currently blocking the entrance of this already chaotic fire scene.

"Damnit Donald! What the hell are you doing? Push those reporters back back back! Don't let them get any closer! Quickly put up the tape again!" The blue-haired cop shouted in frustration. As an experienced cop, he knew too well what a big headline this unbelievable incident could make. Nowadays the news media cares about nothing but grabbing eye-catching headlines and breaking news as fast as possible. And when they do that they are in such a frenzy that can be hardly stopped.

"Look! The said survivor is coming out! She's indeed unhurt!"

Unfortunate to Isa and his team, the journalists were out-numbered. While the cops were trying hard to block off the scene and keep things in control, some reporters could always find a way to sneak through. Like now…

"Miss! You are the sole survivor of this horrible ordeal, correct?"

"I…"

Ventus was stunned by the microphone that was suddenly shoved to her face. The constant flashing of camera flashlight caused her an awful headache. She was completely not prepared for this. Whatever calmness she forced herself to hold back when the incident happened was all gone now. Right now she just felt too exhausted. Her body was uncontrollably shaking from the dread and fear as the flashbacks of hell-like scenes hit her mind. So many people have…died right in front of her eyes and she could do nothing to stop it. The realization of how fragile life indeed is frightened her to no end. Now she simply didn't have any energy left to deal with all these annoying media reporters.

"Miss, I would like to represent all citizens of Radiant Garden to interview you exclusively. What really happened in tonight's concert? Is it true that those people spontaneously combusted?"

"Please…just…leave me alone…" Ventus whispered in agony. She had to shut close her eyes in hopes to alleviate the sharp pain pounding in her head. But even with her eyes closed, she could still _see_ people wailing in despair, rolling in fire and burning alive. She could feel her ears ringing too, blocking any noises from outside. She couldn't hear the outside and she didn't want to hear.

"Please answer my questions Miss. Why are you the only one who didn't get any injury at all? Do you have something to do with this fire? Are you actually the one who set the fire? Are you -"

"Scram, bastard!"

The reporter didn't get the chance to finish his question bombarding as the crowd suddenly heard a woman's voice shouting angrily. In the next moment, what people saw was the reporter's body flying onto the ground after a female cop with flame-colored hair punched him hard on his face.

"Are you all fucking deaf? She said leave her alone so leave her the fuck alone! You fucking hear me?" Basically everyone was shocked at what the red-haired policewoman had just done, including Ventus.

"Oh my god oh my god, did you get that filmed? The police is beating unarmed civilian!"  
"Are you crazy? You aren't getting away for this! We're gonna sue you!"

"Sue my ass. You guys not only deaf but also blind. Can't you see what's said on this yellow tape? This is an off-limit area and she's our important witness! Back your sorry ass off immediately! Or do you want me to arrest all of your for obstructing police investigation?"

Even the most reckless journalists started retreating in fear because of the scary red-haired policewoman's murderous threatening manner. No one wants to get into trouble right? But Isa couldn't help but facepalmed himself for what his fiery-tempered partner had done. Oh boy…

"Sorry Ven, I'm late."

"No…Lea, thanks for that." Ventus could only smile at her friend weakly. She didn't know what else to say about the dramatic turn of the event. But she really was grateful that the redhead came to her rescue. Otherwise only god knows when this nightmare could end.

"Isa, I'm driving Ven back home. 'll be back later."

"Sure. Take care of her."

No one dared to come close to the blonde again as the ferocious red-haired policewoman led the girl to the police car, sending the media reporters deadly glares while cracking her knuckles loudly.

* * *

"Ven, you okay? Do you want me to stop by the hospital?"

"No. I'm fine. I just want to go home…"

"Yay…you must be tired. That was really something that happened back there…"

"…"

The redhead driver worried about the blonde girl sitting on the passenger seat next to her. Lea always saw this girl as her younger sister. She knew Ventus was a strong-willed young woman, but what happened tonight was just too striking and disturbing. To be honest, not all the professionally trained cops were able to handle this type of incident, leave alone a young college student who just had to experience and survive through the nightmare. Of course she'd be worried.

"Oh about your boyfriend," Lea paused a little, trying to search for the guy's name, "…what's his name again? Seifer, right? He's one lucky guy." Ven had told her about her date tonight earlier today after their meeting on campus in the morning. Neither of them had thought this was how the date turned out to be.

"…He's not my boyfriend." Ventus responded half-heartedly, her blank eyes staring at the outside night city through the car window, "Is he alive?"

"Yeah, the guy is among a few survivors who aren't too badly burnt. Heard that he snatched a fire extinguisher from some other guy and used on himself. Tsk tsk, you should see how he was whining like a chicken-wuss when we got him onto the ambulance. Seriously, shouldn't he be more grateful that he survived instead of complaining about everything? What a loser."

Her redhead friend obviously didn't think about to conceal her contempt towards the guy at least, Ventus could only shake her head slightly. This guy was definitely a wrong choice. Next time, she had to make sure she get to really know about her date before go out with them. Yet nevertheless, it was still a good news that the guy survived. Too many lives had been lost tonight. No matter what kind of person Seifer is, no one deserves to die.

"Hey Ven, I'm not trying to give you a lecture or something. But you really should be more careful when you pick your date, yo'know? Take my words, never date a loser like that one, got it memorized?"

Ventus smiled a bit. She knew the red-haired cop was trying to distract her with a lighter topic. For that she was grateful.

"Don't worry Lea. I had him escort me just 'cuz he kept pestering me for a date. And I was thinking it could give me reasons to turn him down after this one date."

"Glad to hear that. I know our Ven has better taste. Y'know we have a bunch of good kids close to your age in our office if you're interested. Well yeah, most of them are still green rookies but they are good lads. I can introduce some to you if you like!"

"Thanks but I think I need to take a break first." Ventus chuckled at the older female's suggestions. Lea really was like an elder sister to her. She felt much better now.

* * *

After a short period of silence, the red-haired cop spoke again in a more serious tone, "…Ven, I know this might be hard for you, but we need you to tell us what happened tonight. Of course not now. You need rest. Tomorrow morning I'll come to pick you up. You know you're the only witness we have in good shape."

"I understand. I'll go with you." Ventus answered immediately without any hesitate. She has already made her decision. "In fact, if Uncle allows me, I'm going to ask to join your investigation team."

"What?"

"Those people are right. I _am_ the only one who didn't combust tonight. I think…I'm somehow immune to this spontaneous human combustion thing."

"But this spontaneous-whatever crap is just…"

"Lea, I know it may sound crazy, but this case is not _normal_. It may be more complicated than we know. I just want to learn the truth."

"Wow, now you sound like a cop already. Okay girl, but let's call it a day first. You take good rest, and we deal with this mess tomorrow."

"…Sure. Mmm…no, actually, I think I should tell you this now. Lea, you probably want to check out this singer Xion first. We need to find her."

"Xion? Why? You think the Organization XIII is involved in this?" The redhead seemed tensed a little bit upon hearing the singer's name.

"Yes. I think she is the one responsible for the catastrophe."

"What? How come?" The female cop's voice raised in surprise, which in turn surprised Ventus.

"I mean, I know that little girl. How is it even possible that she is responsible for…_this_?" Lea explained in disbelief, but as soon as the words came out she immediately regret what she just said. They are criminal investigators, they shouldn't let personal emotion or belief to interfere with their judgement. Given evidence, they should treat every suspect the same no matter they personally know the person or not. But still, what Ventus said was just too unexpected to her.

"You know Xion?" The blonde questioned with surprise.

"Yeah, actually my younger brother Axel is one of the members in Org XIII. And he and Xion are good friends."

"…your brother…is one of the Org XIII? Then the concert tonight…" Ventus covered her mouth with her hand, she didn't know if she should continue.

"Don't worry. Axel wasn't in this concert. The other half of the Org are preparing for another concert tomorrow. He'll be performing tomorrow night at Radiant Garden Park."

"…I see."

"Axel and Xion are quite close. Guess I should start with asking my brother about her then."

"I'm sorry Lea. I don't mean to suspect your brother's friend, but…"

"It's okay. You must have your reasons to think so. I trust you."

Lea unconsciously tightened her grip on the steering wheel. The policewoman looked more serious than she normally was.

"It's gonna be another while till we get to your place. Take a nap if you want, girl."

"…thanks, Lea."

They stopped talking after that. Ventus turned her head to the side, continuing to stare at the night scenes outside.

**It all started with this incident.  
The following days that were to become an even worse nightmare for all…  
People will eventually forget and go on with their lives.  
But I will never forget it.  
It was pure terror…but…  
It was also days filled with unforgettable memories…fear…despair…sorrow…and love…  
I can never forget them.**

TBC

* * *

**A/N:** I don't know why I'm updating this only-very-few-people-interested story instead of my other more popular ones…I guess I just love PE too much to give up. Lol, I wanna play the game again. I love Aya-chan and my Ven-chan XDXDXD


	5. Chapter 5

**Primal Eyes**

**Day 2.1**

Gazing at the white ceiling of her room, Ventus blinked her unfocused dry eyes once more. She could hear the birds start chirping outside her window. The dawn was breaking.

She didn't have any dream last night. In fact, Ventus could barely fall asleep the whole night. The flashbacks of last night's catastrophe hunted her mind the whole time. She tried to force the images of people burning alive out of her mind, but the attempt was void. Fear and shock was still poisoning her mind despite her effort of telling herself that she should be stronger than this. She chose to become a cop. To be a cop meant she would have to face this sort of situation, the situations in which people get hurt or die, all the time in her future career. She had to be braver and stronger. She had to be able to handle nightmares like this. How would she be able to help the others if she couldn't keep her own cool at first place?

Eve, mitochondria, that golden-eyed man, and herself…Ventus' hazed mind couldn't stop thinking about them. She got so many questions and doubts. But she found herself could hardly sort out anything. Especially about that man, every time she thought about him, Ventus could feel a weird stir in her stomach. When she shut her glassy blue eyes close, she could still feel that burning pair of melt gold fixing on her boldly. Ventus couldn't tell why her heart was throbbing when she thought about their encounter back at Cocoon House. She couldn't justify why she found that man…attractive.

_Not a good time for this_.

Ventus tried to shake off such unaccountable sentiment. She closed her eyes once more, trying to get at least some sleep. Today was doomed to be a tough long day. She had to regain energy as much as possible.

As her consciousness finally turning blurry, Ventus felt that she was hearing that familiar piano melody again. Hugging the pillow tighter, she felt the melody was calming her down, making her feel safe and warm.

That melody…it seemed she had heard it before. She wasn't very sure about it but she felt that when she was little, she had heard her mother playing that piece of beautiful music…

Ventus couldn't remember what her mother looked like anymore, she didn't remember anything about her. But before she fell into the dream world, she saw a blonde woman in a creamy-white dress sitting by a piano, looking and smiling so lovingly at her _two_ young children.

Mother…

* * *

The ringtone from her cell phone woke her up from her shallow slumber. Ventus picked her cell and saw she had quite a few unread new text messages, many of which were send last night. She didn't even notice.

Like all the other text messages, the just arrived message also came from Terra and Aqua. They were asking her whether it's okay for them to come to see her shortly. They were very worried about her.

It was just like yesterday's morning when she texted her friends with worries of their safety. And now their positions were switched. Ventus quickly replied to her two friends, telling them everything was fine. She might be unlucky in the romantic love department, but she was really grateful that god has given her the best friendship. Knowing that her two best friends would always be there worrying about her, caring about her and supporting her, Ventus felt her courage was coming back to her. No matter what kind of dreadful situation she would be facing in the future, as long as she knew she had her two best friends' support, Ventus was sure that she could get through anything.

Their connected hearts were her power.

Not long after, she got another message from Lea. The red-haired policewoman told her she would come to pick her up to go to the police office sometime close to noon. Since she was on something right now so she would be a bit late. Thankfully today was Saturday, meaning no class, Ventus could set up whatever schedule she wanted, so she decided to have brunch with Terra and Aqua first before Lea came to meet her.

* * *

"Ven, you look pale. You didn't sleep well did you?"

"That's obvious. Wonder who can have a good sleep after going through all _that_. Ven, you better take a good rest at home today."

"Thank you both. But I'm really okay. Don't worry about me."

Trying to give her friends a reassuring smile, Ventus stirred her coffee rather uneasily. She didn't have much appetite at the moment.

The brunette woman and blue-haired man quickly looked at each other, worried. Neither of them knew what they could say to comfort their younger friend. Last night when they learned the news of Cocoon House incident on TV, both of them were freaked out. They knew Ventus was having a date at downtown and went to that concert. The shocking news made their blood running cold from head to toes, particularly when the news first said all survivors were badly burnt. But thanks goodness, they soon saw the unharmed blonde showing up in the footage, and no words could describe how relieved they were at the moment when they saw Ven was safe. But then they turned angry as the reporters all rushed to 'interview' the poor trembling girl. Thanks goodness again, the ridiculousness was stopped by a furious red-haired policewoman. They really wanted to thank her for that.

But despite now their "little sister" was sitting right in front of them in one piece, safe and sound, the blonde was constantly trancing out with a paler-than-usual looking face, how could they not keep worrying about her?

"Aqua, I want to know more about mitochondria…"

"Mitochondria? Why all of sudden?" The blue-haired graduate student was surprised when the blonde came up with such a completely-out-of-topic thing after she broke her trance.

"Could it be ever possible that mitochondria…"Ventus paused a bit with hesitation before she spoke out her doubt, "that mitochondria cause the spontaneous human combustion?"

"…Why would you think so?"

"Mitochondria are responsible for producing energy, right? So is it possible for mitochondria to produce enough energy that can set human body on fire?"

The blue-haired man thought over the question then answered, "I do have heard that mitochondria in human body are capable of discharging about 200,000V of electricity at once. If that converts to heat energy, then yes…to burn a human body is not impossible."

"Aqua is right. For a human to burn and melt, close to 900 Celsius of heat must be generated. There are several hundred mitochondria present within a single cell. If all the mitochondria in the body began functioning at the same time, a tremendous amount of energy would be generated and released. Melting a human into a puddle of fluid would be a simple task with so much energy." Terra then further explained.

"So…it is possible…" Ventus frowned uneasily.

"But that's just _in_ _theory_. This can never happen in real life. It's not possible for all the mitochondria to function at the same time."

"It _is_ possible…if all the mitochondria are ordered by someone to do so."

"Ven, what are you talking about? Who could possibly 'order' mitochondria to do that? They are just a bunch of organelles in the cells."

"But they are vital to life. Didn't you say that in yesterday's lecture? And you also mentioned that mitochondria mutate 20 times faster than cell nucleus do. That means they can evolve at a much faster rate. Maybe they have already evolved to a level that they possess a certain power beyond our cognition? It's not entirely surprising if they do…" The blonde's frown deepened as she explained her theory.

"It is true that mitochondria evolve very fast. It's also true that we don't know much as for how mitochondria communicate with each other. But your theory about someone from outside giving orders to mitochondria inside a human body is just…unthinkable."

"What if mitochondria have their own consciousness?"

"Oh Ven…that would be science fiction!"

"Well Aqua, you can't say Ven is entirely wrong. We know very little about mitochondria after all. We can't rule out such possibility yet."

"Aqua, you said yesterday that some people believe the once-independent mitochondria invaded the ancestor of the eukaryotic cells like parasite. Do you think it's possible that one day mitochondria rebel the host and seek for independence once again?"

"…To be honest, I don't think it's possible. Unlike cells or bacteria, mitochondria cannot be grown in culture, because the cell nucleus contains DNA that encode for proteins which are critical for mitochondria's existence. True, mitochondria itself contain some DNA of its own, but the so-called mitochondrial DNA only encode 13 proteins, while the great majority of 1500 mitochondrial proteins are encoded by the genes found in the cell nucleus. These critical genes of mitochondria have long ago been fused with the nucleus genome. On top of that, the nucleus genome also encodes growth factors that control the fate of mitochondria. They cannot exist without their host cells."

_It doesn't sound like mitochondria are parasite…It sounds more like that the nucleus __**enslaved**__ mitochondria…_Ventus couldn't help but think that way.

"If what Aqua said is true…then what did Eve mean by 'mitochondria are going to be free'?..." Ventus muttered to herself, lost in her own thoughts once more. Her two best friends looked at each other even more worried.

"Ven? Why are you suddenly so interested in mitochondria? I don't get it…"

"If I say, it is mitochondria that ignited people last night, will you believe me, Aqua?"

"What…?"

"…I know it sounds crazy to you…" Ventus smiled weakly to her puzzled-looking male friend who didn't seem to know how to answer this question. She knew Aqua could never lie. Even though they're friends, the blue-haired graduate student wouldn't simply go agree on everything, especially on things beyond his rational thinking.

"I believe Ven." But then Terra reached out and patted her on the back of her hand. The brunette graduate student chuckled, "Aqua is just too stubborn. It's not easy for him to accept new ideas. Your suggestion is indeed unimaginable at first hearing, but who knows? Though our research field is totally different, but I can do some literature search about mitochondria for you if you think it's necessary, Ven."

"Thank you Terra. It's just my guess…I don't know more about it, but I just feel…it's just…too unusual."

"Ven…" Embarrassed by the comment from his own girlfriend, Aqua looked at their younger friend concernedly. The serious expression on the blonde's face made him start to waver over his scientific beliefs. "Maybe Terra is right." He said, "I shouldn't restrain myself with existing knowledge. There's so much we don't know about the world. I will ask our supervisor Professor Eraqus about this. Let's see what he thinks about your mitochondria theory."

"Thanks, Aqua." A genuine smile spread across the blonde girl's face, making her look even more beautiful. Suddenly, Ventus felt a burning gaze on her. Her smile froze and she immediately looked around the café. But no one looked suspicious.

That gaze on her…maybe it was there all the time but she only noticed it because it turned bolder at the moment she smiled.

…Who could that be? Who was looking at her?

* * *

"Excuse me, are you Miss Ventus Brea?"

The trio had finished their brunch and about to leave the café. But they were stopped by a stranger – a blond young man who appeared in front of them, or to be more precise, in front of Ventus.

"Yes, that's me. And you are…?"

Ventus looked at the stranger, intrigued. The blond young male was about her age. His blond hair was shoulder-long, with a delicate facial feature and frail looking, he almost looked like a girl.

"My name is Namine. I'm sorry but may I have a few minutes with you please? There is something I must talk to you."

He spoke in a soft and quiet voice. His manner was very polite, maybe too polite. The humbleness in his vibe confused Ventus even more. She didn't know anyone like him. She never heard of this name. What important issue could a stranger have to talk to her?

"Namine? Wait, I know the name…Aren't you from Dr. Xehanort's lab?"

"Y-yes, I am." Lowering his head, the blond seemed to get a bit nervous as Aqua recognized him.

"What business do you have with Ven?" Aqua asked the blond in a cautious and protective tone.

Both Aqua and Terra knew that their supervisor Eraqus and Dr. Xehanort, who mysteriously died couple days ago, were classmates and graduated at the same year. However, for some reason unbeknownst to them, the two scholars who were once close-friends had become quite estranged now, so that there wasn't much communication between the graduate students from two labs either despite of the close location. Yet, rumours and gossips about the 'mysterious' Xehanort lab were often heard in their research centre. And often the gossips were negative. No one really knew what kind of research the Xehanort lab was doing. People from that lab rarely talked about themselves or what they were doing. And just couple days ago, a mysterious accident 'mysteriously' killed a few people from that lab including Dr. Xehanort himself.

And now, a student from Xehanort lab, a complete stranger, wanted to talk to Ven? This didn't feel very right to Aqua.

"I'm sorry but I would like to talk to Miss Brea alone…if possible."

"Oh really? Is there such necessity? We don't know you," said Terra in distrust. Obviously neither Aqua nor Terra liked the idea to have this stranger got close to their younger friend at this troubled time.

"Please, this is important. I have to…I must talk to Miss Brea in person and alone." The blond male appealed anxiously, as if the matter was indeed urgent and important.

"Namine, you can call me Ventus or just Ven." Ventus did appreciate the fact her two best friends trying to protect her as much as they could, but she didn't think it was necessary to get over-protective and make things difficult for this young man. The blond young man might look as delicate as a girl, but the light in his cerulean eyes was firm and serious. Ventus wasn't easy to trust but her gut feeling told her this man was worth trusting.

"I can talk to you –" Just as she was about to agree to talk to the young man, her cell phone rang. That was Lea. The redhead must have arrived.

"Excuse me." Ventus pardoned herself to answer the phone. She was right. The red-haired policewoman was waiting for her in front of her apartment building.

"I'm sorry Namine. I would like to talk to you but I have to be somewhere else at the moment. Can we make it another time?" After hanging up, Ventus turned back to the blond male.

"Of course." The blond nodded quickly, then took out a name car from his pocket, handed it over to Ventus, "This is my contact. Please contact me once you have some free time. It's very important and I think you _have to_ know it."

The blond man's earnest gesture further puzzled Ventus, making her wonder what kind of important things she must learn. But she didn't have time for that now. After reassuring her two friends that it wouldn't be a big deal to meet this blond stranger and she would be alright, Ventus bid farewell to Aqua and Terra. She returned to her place and met up with Lea who was now driving her to the police office.

TBC

* * *

**A/N:** One of the friends asked me who would be Maeda in this story. My answer is…Namine! XD  
For those who know about the game, you know what that means XD. Well, maybe not exactly though XD. Anyone wanna guess what Namine wants to say to Ven?


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: **Special thanks to BliztMagister, Vanitasu, RNSVCZ and InnocentGraces for your support of this story. It is you guys who keep this story alive.

* * *

**Primal Eyes**

**Day 2.2**

"That's all I know about what happened last night."

Ventus just finished retelling the nightmare she encountered last night in front of her Uncle, Police Chief Leon Brea and other police officers in the small meeting room.

"According to Ven's description, this singer Xion is indeed very suspicious!"  
"But wait, I still don't get it. What is this mito-mitochondria thing all about? And this spontaneous human combustion thing, we are talking about real life, not some Si-Fi right?"  
"Does anyone seriously think the media will buy it if we just tell them like that? It was a singer who ignited all those people without laying a single finger on them?"

"So are you guys saying Ven is lying?!" Lea couldn't help but got pissed as the other cops started making doubtful comments on Ven's statement about the incident.

"I'm not saying Ven's lying, but you can't deny that what she just said is clearly violating the common sense." One of the cops, Donald retorted.

"Whatever. I trust Ven. You all have seen how bizarre the scene was back at Cocoon House!"

"Lea is right. My preliminary autopsy results are consisted with what Ven has described. " Ienzo, the usually quiet forensic expert, unexpectedly joined the discussion by backing up the redhead policewoman. "Many of the victims' bodies were burnt under 800-900 Celsius. But so far we haven't found any signs of external fuel sources that might reach this high temperature at the scene. That leaves the spontaneous human combustion as the only plausible explanation."

"If it was just one single case, this might be explained by the 'wick effect', or 'candle effect' whichever way you like to call. But it won't explain _how_ such a massive number of people could burst into flame at the exact same time." Ienzo finished his comment in his usual monotone. His last question made many of the cops in the room frown and turned silent.

"Plus, it is true that we lost the whereabouts of the singer, Xion. Apparently, all the Org XIII members on stage last night, except her, are all dead. And she disappeared," said Isa who patted his partner's shoulder in attempts to calm the redhead down.

"B-But still, are we really gonna tell the media that this singer Xion ignited all these people by commanding the mitochondria in their body to do so? It's just…crazy…"

Silence occupied the whole room. Even Ventus knew how absurd, crazy, unbelievable it sounded…

"'When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth'." A deep voice eventually broke the dead silence. Everyone in the room knew the famous quote, but not till their Chief spoke it out did they realize how true the quote might be.

"Our job is to find out the truth and catch the criminals." Leon continued, his voice deep and firm. The middle-aged brunet Chief had a scar running between his always knitted brows, making the respectable man look even more dignified. Many of the young cops subconsciously straightened their body as their Chief started talking.

"I will explain the situation at the press conference this afternoon. The most pressing matter of the moment is to find Xion. We should also track down the other black-haired man Ven has mentioned. Mickey, your team go keep searching the scene at Cocoon House. Don't overlook any possible clues. Report to me at once if you find anything."

"Yes, Sir!"

"And to find this girl Xion - "

"Sir, I've already got some info about her." Lea spoke up, also gave Ventus a nod. "My younger brother Axel is Xion's band-mate. They are quite close friends. I've asked him if there's any unusual thing about the girl. According to Axel, Xion isn't in a very good health condition. She often goes to see doctor at the RGU hospital. She also seems to be taking long term medication but the other band-mates have no idea what kind of medication it is."

Ventus was a bit surprised on the unexpected information as Lea continued. "Axel said she was particularly in a bad shape in the past couple months that she was constantly taking pills. She even collapsed at one rehearsal. Other band members were worried that she couldn't handle the pressure with such a bad health condition and suggested to cancel the show. But she insisted, coz it was her first personal show and she had worked so hard for this chance. The concert meant too much for her and the girl just didn't want to give up her dream.

"Axel told me Xion loves singing. She's the most hard-working girl he's ever known. Motivation-wise, it _is_ very hard to think why she would want to ruin her own concert that she had worked so hard for..."

"Maybe…Xion is not herself anymore. I mean…she told me her name was _Eve_." Ventus interrupted. Lea's report made her feel somehow guilty and sad. After all, Xion could be the worst victim in this case, a girl who was chasing her dream becoming a hollow puppet under Eve's control…

"Isa and I have checked Xion's apartment this morning. She lives alone, no family in this city. What's peculiar is that her apartment also caught on fire early last night. Apparently she didn't go back since then. Everything has burnt down to ashes, not much we could find there."

"Sir, Lea and I will head to the RGU hospital this afternoon to find out more about her," said Isa.

"Sounds good," Leon nodded, "Donald, you take Ven to Jesse to make a facial composite of the black-haired man."

"Actually…" Ventus hesitated a bit, but eventually handed a piece of paper to her Uncle, "I've already drawn him down this morning." Because she believed such skills could be helpful in her future career, Ventus had often practised sketching human portrait as a hobby. Though not a professional expert yet, she had gained quite a confident in her own skills. Plus, to her, this raven male is quite…unforgettable.

Leon's face turned frozen at the moment he lay his eyes on the paper. Ventus could swear she had never seen such a stunned expression from her Uncle. Her Uncle was always cool, calmed, unmovable, like nothing could ever surprise him. But Leon was stunned, stunned by what he saw on this piece of paper.

"This is…impossible…" Only the very few whose location was very close to the Chief could hear the brunet man murmuring in disbelief. Yet no one dare to ask what's impossible.

After a couple moments of silence, the brunet Police Chief put down the paper and turn to the group once more, "This unusual case is very serious. Everyone should keep in mind that any possibility should not be overlooked. Report directly to me once you find any related clues. Now I declare this meeting closed. Everyone, go do your job."

Ventus was surprised that her Uncle didn't make any arrangement to track down the suspicious raven before he called the meeting closed. She stayed in the room until everyone else had left the room and finally brought up her courage to ask –

"Uncle, please allow me to join the investigation team."

"I refuse." The answer was immediately made, leaving her no room for objection.

"But-but Uncle! I'm the only one immune to Eve's power. If we have to confront her, I will be the only one–"

"Only one? What about this man? He didn't catch fire either. " The brunet officer pointed to the sketch paper. Young Ventus couldn't read the emotions hiding deep in that pair of aged grey-blue eyes at all.

"Right…about this man, I think…"

"Ven, get away from this man next time you see him." Ventus was about to ask why Leon didn't make any instruction about searching for the raven, but she was interrupted again by her Uncle. "Don't try to approach him yourself. Contact me at once if you see him again."

"B-but, can you at least tell me why?"

"No need to ask further. Just listen to me. Ven, leave this to us. Focus on your own study, don't step into this."

"Uncle!"

"Your parents left you to me. I will not allow anything to happen to you."

Leon had made it iron clear. Ventus knew the stubborn old man would not listen to her objection anymore. The blonde lowered her head in frustration, lost for words.

She just wanted to know the truth. She just wanted to know why her? Why was she able to face Eve without getting hurt? Who was Eve? Who was that raven man? Why did they seem to know something about her that herself didn't know? Even her own Uncle was hiding something from her! Leon obviously recognized the black-haired man she drew. Did they know each other? How did her Uncle know about that guy? If Leon indeed knew him, why didn't he tell her the truth?

Ventus got so many questions, but no one was willing to give her any answers. She just wanted to find out the answers by herself. Why couldn't she do that?

She stared at her own palm, slowly closing it into a fist.

_I don't need to be over-protected. I have to learn the truth. I have to find the answer myself._

Holding her fist tight, Ventus had made her decision.

* * *

"Lea, are you guys leaving for the hospital soon?"

Ventus stopped the red-haired policewoman in the hallway.

"Yup, Isa is getting a search warrant from Boss. Y'know, without that thing, the hospital won't let us see their patient records."

"I see. Can I go with you?"

"Boss agreed?"

"No, he didn't." Shaking her head, Ventus had no intention to lie to this woman. "But Lea, _please_! Please let me go with you. I've seen Eve. I know about her. I can help you!"

"Well…" the policewoman scratched her head, "guess Boss doesn't want to put you in any danger…"

"I'm not a kid anymore. I don't need to be protected like this. Remember? I'll soon be one of you after my graduation next year. So, PLEASE, Lea?"

"Yeah…" Lea knew this blonde girl was just as stubborn as her uncle, she wouldn't stop bugging her if she turned her down, "Okay then…don't think digging a few patient records at the hospital would be too dangerous anyway. I'll let you tag along then, but promise me, you don't do anything without my command. Got it memorized?"

"Sure. Of course! Thank you Lea!" The blonde immediately give her a sincere smile in return.

"Hey Lea, I got the paper. Let's go. Huh? Ven you still here?" At the other end of the hallway, the blue-haired cop was walking towards the redhead, waving a document in his hand.

"Isa, Ven is coming with us. Boss approved."

Ventus almost widened her eyes but the red-haired policewoman quickly winked to her, hinting her to keep silent.

"Okay? Then let's go. No time to waste."

The poker-faced blue-haired cop simply took a quick look at the blonde girl, didn't say anything else. Ventus was surprised again that Isa didn't even question a single bit about Lea's claim. The blue-head used to have a reputation of being overly careful. Err, maybe his reckless partner did have some influence on him over the years…

* * *

The RGU hospital, i.e. Radiant Garden University Hospital, was the largest hospital in the city. However, Ventus had never been to this hospital in her memory. With all the exercises and healthy diet, Ventus rarely got sick. The university's Student Clinic was sufficient enough for her in few cases she caught a cold.

Then…why? Why did she have this familiar feeling when she was standing right in front of the main entrance of the RGU hospital? As if she had been here before…

Suddenly Ventus saw a little girl. A little blonde girl was watching _her_ with a pair of large crystal blue eyes from the other side of the glass door, smiling at _her_.

"!"

Her body acted ahead her mind. Ventus didn't hear Lea call out her name in surprise; she already rushed into the hospital. But when she looked around again, the little blonde girl was nowhere to see. Ventus pinched her nose._ Don't tell me it's another illusion_…

Why did that little girl…look so much like herself?

"Ven are you okay? What did you see?" The other two cops caught up and asked in concern.

"Sorry Lea. It's just…I'm seeing _things_ recently. Guess it's one of them. It's really nothing."

"You didn't rest well last night did you? Maybe you should just go home…"

"No I'm fine. Sorry for that. Let's start the business."

Ventus had to keep reminding herself that she was just tagging along, she shouldn't cause any trouble in any way. She kept telling herself to stay calm, stay strong.

* * *

After Isa and Lea introduced themselves to the hospital staff, the head nurse brought them a man in white coat and with a red scarf. It is said the man was the assistant director of the hospital, Dr. DiZ.

Isa briefly explained the situation to Dr. DiZ and asked for permission to review Xion's medical records. After checking out the necessary documents, Dr. DiZ led them to the Hospital archive room.

To their surprise, Xion had a quite handful records in this hospital. In hopes to find out any useful information as quickly as possible, they printed out all her records from the computer and divided the papers into three parts so each person could skim over one part.

"Doesn't look like any drug abuse or addiction is involved…" Apparently Lea couldn't remain silent for a single moment, she kept making comments as she read through the records, "Poor girl. She's been very sick in the past few months…Holy cow! Look at all these meds she has to take! There're tons of them! What is this 'Cyc'…'Cyclo'-thing? Darn, we should have brought Ienzo here too. How the hell you pronounce this drug name?"

"It's Cyclosporin A. It's an immunosuppressant drug. Looks like most meds Xion is taking are immunosuppressants. Here. Cortisone is also commonly used to suppress immune response."

"Wow, Ven, I don't know you are good at medicine."

"If you're smart enough, you should be able to read text right below. It clearly states what Cyclosporin A is."

Ventus couldn't help but chuckle inwardly as Isa made fun of his partner with his poker-face remaining the same, which made the redhead pouted like a school girl.

"Fine fine, Mr. Smart-ass. Only if her doctor was still here, it could save us much trouble. God, all these drug names made me dizzy already."

They had asked Dr. DiZ whether they could meet with Xion's doctor, Dr. Vexen, in person. But unfortunately Dr. Vexen already left the hospital last month after his doctor licence being suspended. Apparently this Dr. Vexen was caught conducting some unauthorized drug trial test on his patients without their consent or realization. He was basically kicked out. The hospital was yet to find another doctor for Xion.

_Something didn't feel right in this picture_…

"Okay Mr. Smart-ass, explain to me what an immunosuppressant is used for."

"It's mostly used to treat autoimmune diseases or used following an organ transplant to prevent rejection. And looks like Xion's situation is the later."

_Organ transplant?_

"I have the part that contains her records from ten years ago. Ten years ago, she received a liver transplant right here in this hospital."

_Ten yeas ago? !_

"Xion was born with inherited metabolic diseases. She had a major liver failure ten years ago and only a liver transplant could save her life at then." Isa continued to explain with his eyes fixing on the paper, but suddenly, he looked up at Ventus with a thoughtful look.

"Look here." Isa signalled the other two to come closer and showed them what was written on the paper.

"Orthotopic Liver Transplantation for Xion Fair…Surgeon: Dr. Xehanort. Donor: Vanitas Brea (deceased in accident). HLA compatibility: Perfect match…"

"Wait, Xehanort? Is that the same Xehanort we know?" Lea shouted in surprise.

"Quite possible."

"Isa…the other name you just said…" Ventus could hear her voice was trembling.

"Vanitas Brea. You share the same surname. Do you know the name?"

Ventus didn't know how to answer the question. She didn't know whether to answer yes or no. If 'no', then how could she explain the weird shocking feeling that hit her when she heard the name. But if 'yes', she couldn't think of any person that could be associated with this name from her memory.

"Ummm…Vanitas Brea…Ventus Brea…Hey Ven, do you find that name sounds pretty close to yours?"

Lea's comment shocked Ventus even more. They both have the same family name and their names sounded very close. What could that mean…?

Vanitas…Vanitas, Vanitas, VANITAS –

Chanting the name repeatedly in her mind, Ventus found herself completely lost.

_Vanitas, who are you?_

...

TBC

* * *

**A/N**: Vani is a DEAD person! …or not? Review and I'll tell you the answer in the next chapter XD (Don't believe her)


	7. Chapter 7

**Primal Eyes**

**Day 2.3**

"So, in brief words, Xion received a liver transplant ten years ago to save her life. She had lived a normal healthy life until one year ago. For some reason, she started to show severe rejection symptoms until recently, so that so she has to take large doses of immunosuppressants to turn down her over-reacting immune system." Isa concluded.

"Isn't that weird? Why does her body suddenly start to reject the transplanted organ after ten years?" questioned Lea.

"Who knows? We are no doctors. Plus I don't see any relevance of this to our case. She is just a sick singer."

"No wait, I sense something fishy about this Dr. Xehanort. Could he also have died from spontaneous human combustion? The body kinda looked the same as the victims at Cocoon House. Don't you think it's too odd to be a mere coincidence?"

"Hmm…a doctor who did a surgery for Xion burnt to death meanwhile her audience at the concert also burnt to death. You think there's a connection?"

"Of course. I mean, what's the odd could this happen around the same time?"

"But Lea, haven't you forgot? We don't yet have any direct evidence to conclude that Dr Xehanort died from spontaneous combustion. This could very well be a mere coincidence."

"No, it couldn't! My gut feeling tells me this Xehanort guy is suspicious."

"You mean your 'female intuition'…?"

"Hey what's that look on your face! Don't look down on women's gut feeling. You know it's often most close to the truth! Right, Ven?"

Ventus hadn't paid any attention to Lea and Isa's argument until her name was called.

"Huh? Ah…yeah, I think Lea is right."

Ventus tried to sort out her mind, but the name Vanitas was still haunting her despite her effort to shake off the name from her mind.

Based on Isa's conclusion, it did seem that Xion's medical history didn't provide them any useful clues. But Ventus also had this 'gut feeling' making her feel like things were starting to connect with one another.

She took in a deep breath and continued, "I think, we might as well run a background check on Dr. Xehanort. Just to see what kind of research he was doing at RGU. I can ask my friends to help with that."

"I agree with Ven. Boss also said 'don't over look any possibility'."

"Actually I'm more concerned about where Xion could be at now…She's dangerous." Ventus said thoughtfully with her fingers holding her chin. "Only if we had any clue where she could possibly go…"

"Talking about that…If the incident had not happened last night, she should be living another concert at Radiant Garden Central Park tonight."

"Really?" Widening her blue eyes, Ventus had a thought struck her, "then she might show up at the concert tonight!"

"You really think so?" Both Isa and Lea looked at her strangely, "If she indeed was the culprit, she would know the police is looking for her everywhere right now. If I were her, I wouldn't show up so quickly again."

_But she might no longer be a human. You can't expect her to act the same way as what ordinary humans would do_. Ventus wanted to disagree but she hesitated with her words.

"Axel said the Org XIII was looking for her as well since last night. He promised me to contact me at once if the band hears anything from her. If she disappeared for a 'good' reason, I don't think they will hear from her again that easily. Anyways, the band will call us if she indeed shows up at tonight's concert."

"Wait, are they still going to hold the concert tonight? I thought they would have cancelled it after what happened last night." Isa questioned his partner.

"Yeah, it isn't supposed to be an all-members' show after all. I heard the Org has been preparing for this show for quite a long while. You see, it's gonna take place at the open air theatre in the Central Park. It's gotta be a big one! They can't simply cancel it in such a short notice. My bro also thought they should cancel it, but their manager and the company didn't agree with him. They even said that the band could very well take the chance to turn the concert into a memorial event for the victims died last night. More people will come, which means more money for the company." Lea sighed and shrugged.

Ventus frowned at the words but otherwise remained silent. She didn't know what to say. It's just the way how society works these days.

"Lea…I have a very bad feeling about this. Is there any way we can stop the concert? What if Xion, no, Eve indeed shows up tonight? What if she plans to do the same thing like last night? Last night could just be a beginning for her…"

"But Ven, nobody's gonna believe us…we don't have any solid proof yet." Despite saying that, the expression on the red-haired policewoman's face turned more and more serious. _She must be worrying about her brother_, thought Ventus.

"Isa! I'm going to the Central Park tonight!" The redhead cop finally snapped.

"I'll go with you then." As if he had expected his partner would say such thing, Isa didn't look surprised at all. He just knew her too well.

"I'll go with you guys too."

"No, Ven. We can't drag you into this. It could be very dangerous."

"I just want to see the concert." The blond smiled meaningfully, knowing the two cops wouldn't be able to refuse her for this excuse. "Oh Lea, can you ask Axel if he's got any ticket left?"

* * *

Burning sunset stained the sky, making it look like the sky was bleeding.

A middle-aged man was standing in the desolate cemetery alone. He eventually placed a bunch of white lilies in front of a cold tombstone. Twilight pulled his lonely shadow into a long thin line. He stood there quietly, as if he didn't want to disturb the peaceful slumber of those lying under that piece of gravestone.

"Brea, you still here."

He heard another voice from his back, but he didn't bother to turn back, not even a single muscle on his face twitched, for he knew the other man would come here sooner or later.

"Strife, you are late."

Not until the other man walked close and stood still beside him did he finally spoke. His toneless deep voice hid away any emotion.

"Hollow Bastion is not close."

Even though the blond man knew very well explanation was unnecessary, he still retorted. Seeing his old friend again reminded him of the old good time when they were still young and hot-blooded.

He bent down, placing another bunch of white lilies in front of the gravestone.

Neither of the two men was the talking type. Silence remained in between them.

"…It's been ten years already."

They wouldn't have had a chance to meet each other again if it was not for the tenth anniversary of the death of their beloved ones.

"Leon, do you still not intend to tell Ven the truth about her parents?"

Seeing the brunet man come alone, he figured that their niece still hadn't learnt about what today truly was to her.

"…" The brunet man's brows knitted together even tighter, "There is no such necessity," he finally spoke.

"Hmph, so the great Police Chief of Radiant Garden doesn't even dare to let his own niece know the _truth_. How ironic."

But the brunet man was untouched by the other's sarcasms.

"Cloud, learning the truth would do no good for her. Let what's buried there stay there." He pointed to the gravestone, deep voice deadly serious.

Letting out a sigh, the expression on the blond man's face eventually softened.

"Say, Leon, do you ever regret? Maybe we should have insisted on not allowing them to marry each other at then. Maybe it'd be better off for everyone."

"Cloud, you know 'what-ifs' are meaningless."

"…True. Even if we kept objecting, Sora wouldn't give up easily. He was just as stubborn as his brother."

"Hmph. Like your sister was not a stubborn one."

Both men chuckled, their bitter laughs full of sorrow.

"…They must be living a happy life up there in the Heaven."

"…Yeah…"

Chilly wind blew a few dead leaves into the dusk cemetery. Two men become silent once more, lost in their own memories.

The sun had completely sunk under the horizon.

"It's time to go. Let's go have a drink."

"Yeah. It's time to go."

Before leaving, the brunet man bent down again, gently brushing away the dead leaves from the gravestone.

On that piece of grey stone, two names along with their epitaph were carved:

_Sora Brea . Roxas Brea_

_NOT EVEN DEATH CAN SEPARATE THEM._

* * *

**A/N:** Sorry for the shorter chapter. I'm in a depressed mood right now, just want to get this chapter out. I'm so Soroku-deprived. I want to read more Soroku stories! Anyone please? At least tell me where I can find more good Soroku stories. FFnet sucks these days.


	8. Chapter 8

**Primal Eyes**

**Day 2.4**

After they done checking Xion's medical records, Lea asked the hospital where they could find Dr. Vexen. Though Isa felt there was no such necessity since Xion's records had told them pretty much everything regarding her health status, the two women insisted they should pay a visit to Dr. Vexen to find out more about the singer.

Dr. Vexen found a museum consultant job at Radiant Garden Nature Museum after his licence was suspended. So after leaving the hospital, the trio drove to the museum. But much to their disappointment, the doctor wasn't in today.

On the other hand, Ventus contacted Aqua and Terra, asking them if they could find out what kind of research Prof. Xehanort was doing. Terra quickly replied to her. Not too surprisingly, the most famous and influential research papers published by Xehanort Lab in these past twenty years were all on the topic of _mitochondria_.

But one information Terra brought to her particularly shocked Ventus. About twenty-something years ago, Xehanort Lab published a paper on new therapeutics of treating mitochondrial diseases, which ended up to have a huge impact on the field. It was this paper that made the lab so famous and become the leading lab in the medical field. Ventus was so shocked when she saw the name of the first author of the paper:

Dr. Sora Brea.

"Isn't it interesting? We came across lots of Breas today. Wonder if they are related to you, Ven." Lea joked.

Yes, this one was indeed related to her. Sora Brea…it was her father. But she remembered nothing about him except for his name.

No words could describe how her mind was reeling at the moment. Ventus never dreamed to learn that her own father was actually a famous doctor who studied mitochondria, let alone the fact he was one of Xehanort's students. She sensed there must be some connections between all the things she learnt today, but she couldn't yet sort out just what they were.

Yet Ventus came to one conclusion: now it's time to ask her uncle again about her parents. Who were they really? She had to know.

* * *

By the time the trio left the museum empty-handed, it was close to dusk. They quickly dropped by to get some fast foods for dinner before heading to the Central Park. While they trying to finished the burgers in the car, Lea joked to Ventus about how she had to get used to these junk foods if she wanted to become a cop. Well, as far as Ventus could concern, junk food was among the least obstacles she would have to face. Right now, only one thing was in her mind: to get to the Central Park as soon as possible.

'Radiant Garden' was the original name of the Central Park. The city was actually named after the Garden. There was this special plant that grew only in the Garden. The plant would spill shining pollens when its flower bloomed. The sparkling pollens, like pieces of Light floating in the air, would make a gorgeous scene no matter day or night. The city became famous because of this unique plant.

Now the Central Park was not limited to the original Garden where people found the special plant, it was expanded to contain other natural-looking landscapes such as lakes and woods. It also had facilities such as tennis courts, ice-skating rinks, an art museum, the Central Park Zoo and the open-air theatre. Tonight's Org. XIII concert was going to take place at the open-air theatre which had a seating capacity of 2000 people.

The band was so popular that it was impossible to get any ticket by the time Lea called her brother earlier the day. But Axel promised them he would make special arrangement for the trio, they just had to call him again once they arrived.

They arrived at the Central Park merely half hour before the concert would start due to the traffic. No parking could be found near the theatre, thus they had to find a spot at the Zoo parking. As soon as Ventus set her foot on the ground and took a glance towards the direction of the theatre, her vision was suddenly covered with scarlet color. She felt her body turning hot, eyes turning blurry, she swore she heard terrifying noises that sounded like thousands of ghosts screaming in despair at the same time.

_It can't be!_

She painfully covered her ears with both of her hands. She had the same illusion right before the Cocoon House incident last night. No, this was even worse. If what she saw yesterday was an omen of catastrophe, this even worse one could mean nothing but a worse…She did dare to think further.

"Ven? What's wrong? You okay?"

The red-haired policewoman placed a hand on her shoulder, concerned.

"Lea! Isa! We have to stop them! Stop the concert!"

Body shaking violently, Ventus shouted out while still holding her head in agony. She didn't know if she truly had ability of foreseeing the future, but she wouldn't take the chance. If what she just experienced was truly a warning sign of the upcoming disaster like yesterday, she _had_ _to_ warn everyone. It's life of two-thousand people!

"What happened? What's wrong?"

No time to worry whether she made herself sound insane, Ventus told Lea and Isa what she believed to be a warning of the possible crisis waiting for the two-thousand people in that theatre.

"What happened at Cocoon House is going to happen here too! We have to evacuate everyone at once!"

"No no, Ven, calm down first, Ven." Seeing the blonde turning all emotional, the blue-haired cop grabbed both shoulders of hers, trying to stabilize her.

"Ven, listen to me, we can't stop the whole concert just by telling them that you saw an illusion. It's not possible you know?"

"But Isa, what if, what if it's true…"

"Isa, call for backups now! I'm gonna check on my brother." Lea didn't wait till Ventus finish her sentence or Isa reply to her, she immediately sprinted out the parking and ran towards the theatre. Her only brother was there, she wouldn't want to take the chance either.

"…what a woman." The blue-haired cop could only shrug and take out his phone to make the call, he let his partner go anyway.

While Isa was talking on the phone, a conversation among several zoo staffs who just passed by them caught Ventus' attention:

"Luxord, here you are at last! The animals were getting more frantic. We don't know what to do anymore."

"Have you called other vets?"

"Yes we did. But I don't know if they can get here on time. You are the first one arrived."

"Does this happen to all the cages?"

"Yes. I've been working here for many years but never seen such a weird thing. All of the animals suddenly turned anxious and frantic at the same time. Some of them even tried to break out."

"Sounds serious. I don't think I have enough anesthetics to put down all the animals. Call other vets again and tell them to bring more anesthetics!"

"Yes sir."

Disturbed animals trying to break out this place…now it sounded even more ominous. Something terrible must be going to happen. Can I stop it? Can I?

"Ven, let's go. We gotta catch Lea up."

* * *

"Sis are you crazy? How could Xion be the suspect you want?"

Axel widened his green eyes in disbelief at the scene right in front of him: his sister was pointing a gun towards his best friend.

He was waiting for his sister and her partners at the back entrance of the back stage. What he didn't expect to see was Xion, who they lost contact with for the whole day, suddenly showed up with another black-haired man. He didn't know who the stranger was but at least he was happy to see Xion was okay. But then his elder sister showed up too. As soon as she saw the female singer, she immediately pulled out her gun like she was facing an AAA criminal.

While Axel was all freaked out, the black-haired singer was still smiling like nothing happened, no matter what Lea asked her, she just smiled back silently. The other raven man was standing behind the singer, holding his arms across his chest. His eyes were closed. No one could tell what he was thinking.

"Axel, leave here at once. Tell your friends the concert has to be cancelled! It's an order!"

"What the hell Sis? Have you lost your mind?"

"Shut up and do as I say! If you still treasure your life!"

"Hey sis, be reasonable okay? What's going on here anyway?"

"Fuck Axel, I don't have time to explain. Just go away! Xion, I don't want to repeat myself any more. Put up your hands where I can see. Cooperate, or I'll arrest you at once." Holding the gun firmly, Lea slowly approached towards the singer. She cursed inwardly as she saw her stupid brother still remained where he was at the corner of her eyes.

"Heehee...looks like this Madam really knows who I am. Is it Ven who told you about me?" The short raven girl giggled sweetly, not seemingly care a single bit about the fact that the other possessed a weapon.

"So it _is_ you?" Lea unconsciously gnashed her teeth. The singer was no ordinary girl, the aura around her was so eerie that even Lea started to feel crepted out. The red-haired policewoman felt her body was strangely getting hot, her eyelid also jumping like crazy…something bad was going to happen, something really bad…

Suddenly, the raven man standing behind Xion opened his eyes. Lea felt a chill running down her spine at the moment she looked into that pair of melt gold. She thought she had seen all kinds of criminals in her career, none of them could ever make her wince a single bit, but this man was different…for the first time she felt terrified…as soon as she saw that pair of inhuman golden eyes, she simply wanted to run away, her instinct screaming at her that she should escape from the man. Never once in her life did she feel like she was just one step away from the Death itself.

This raven man was even more dangerous than Xion.

The man walked close behind Xion, lowed his head, whispering something into the singer's ear. Then he turned his back, looking like he was about to take off.

"You there, halt!" Lea quickly yelled to stop the man. He must be the suspicious black-haired guy from last night Ven had mentioned. But the man simply ignored her and kept going.

"Lea, we are coming!"

Ventus' voice was heard from her back. Isa and Ven finally arrived.

"Eve!...and you?" Ventus was shocked to see Xion, no, Eve was there, standing right in front of Lea. But what shocked her even more was the presence of the raven young man. She didn't expect their second encounter would happen so fast.

The raven man stopped as he heard Ventus' voice, head turning back to take a quick glance at her. His thin lips curled up into a meaningful smirk. Without saying anything, he resumed his leaving.

"I said stop! Are you deaf?" Lea shouted in frustration, pointing the gun to the raven. Seeing his partner having gun in hand, Isa also pulled out his own gun, alerted.

"Silly, do you truly think such toys could stop us?"

The female singer's smile turned larger, she put her index finger against her lips, blue eyes gradually turning orange…

"Since you're Axel's sister, I shall give you a quick death."

Lips gently moving against the finger, her sweet voice softly announced the death sentence.

"Eve, no!" Ventus screamed in fear, but it was too late.

Lea unbelievably watched her own hand turning into a pile of scarlet goo, dripping onto the ground where her gun dropped. She didn't feel any pain, she didn't feel _anything_. Her hand was just gone. Gone. Before she even realized, fear occupied her whole mind.

Hand first, then forearm, then upper arm, all her muscles and tissues turned into sticky goo, streaming down to the ground.

When her shoulders start to melt, Lea finally comprehended the fate waiting for her –

"Everyone! RUN!"

This was all Lea could say before her fear-twisted face melted into the huge pile of goo that was once her body.

"Sis? What the…? Arrrggghhhh!"

Along with another scream, Lea's brother soon met the same fate as his sister. In the blink of a second, the red-haired singer was also gone, becoming another pile of scarlet goo crawling on the ground.

Ventus felt like to puke her guts out.

But Isa grabbed her wrist. He started to run, dragging her along with him. They had to run, run away from this monster!

"Hehehehehahahahaha…."

The black-haired singer giggled happily as she watched them running away, showing no intention to pursue. She floated into the air, moving towards the entrance of the backstage. The staffs she passed by on her way all burst into flames.

"The show is about to start."

TBC

* * *

**A/N:** I know, I killed Lea, don't hate me.  
Please review, so that I won't kill all of the rest XD


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